


Red Planet

by Princ3sss



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Billy's A Good Brother, M/M, Outer Space, Sharing a Bed, Space Flight, Steve's kinda a spoiled brat
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-04
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:19:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24011188
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Princ3sss/pseuds/Princ3sss
Summary: FLY TO MARS!!A great place for vacations or starting a family!New opportunities await you! Get your tickets now!---Mr. Harrington is expanding his company to the colony on Mars. Mrs. Harrington decided this makes for the perfect family trip. Steve hates both of them for dragging him along. And Billy... well Billy's not supposed to be there.
Relationships: Billy Hargrove/Steve Harrington
Kudos: 21





	1. Before

30 Days To Lift Off  
It was almost time. He had saved up enough money working add jobs. He now had his pre-paid bus ticket sitting inside his wallet. He was slowly packing a few bags with the things he absolutely needed. It was almost time. He was almost free. He was leaving early. Not willing to wait another year before his dad kicked him out once he hit eighteen. He just had to get done with school first. Then his disappearance would be less noticeable. For that he only had four more days until the final bell rang.

27 Days To Lift Off  
His parents were going crazy with the preparations. His mother was trying to plan his graduation party and pack for their trip. His father was trying to make sure his brother Christopher was ready to run the office on his own for a while. He just watched from the sidelines. He honestly didn’t even want to go on the trip. Nine months in space just to land on a dusty planet so his dad could oversee the opening of a new office didn’t seem exciting.  
His classmates were jealous. Told him it was going to be the trip of a lifetime. He knew the tickets were expensive. That it was basically a luxury cruise in space. He just didn’t want to spend it with his parents. They had too many rules and standards. He wanted freedom after graduating, like his brother got. Not his mother babying him every day.

21 Days To Lift Off  
Tomorrow was the day. The bus was leaving at ten and he couldn’t wait to be on it. He just had one more night to get through. One more night with his father to survive.  
He was laying on his bed letting the music in his room wash over him. It was dark inside. Just a little light from the setting sun came into the room. He wondered if he would miss the sunset. If it would be different. He wondered how long it would take for him to get use to the changes he was going to see.  
There was a soft knock on his door. He looked up to see his little sister Max entering and quickly closing the door behind her. She had something in her hands but kept it to where he couldn’t see.  
“Are you really going tomorrow?” She whispered moving closer.  
“Yeah,” he sat up and lowered the music, but didn’t turn it off. “I have to Max. I can’t stay.”  
She looked down sadly and placed the box she was carrying between them. It was one of the newest video communicators. One of the only ones that worked between worlds, between Earth and space. They held contact all the way out to the orbit of Jupiter before they started to cut out. And they were so far outside of his budget range that he never bothered to really look into them himself.  
“Mom and I got them. I told her one of my friends was going on the shuttle. I want,” tears started to fall from the younger girl’s eyes. “I want you to call me.”  
“I will Maxine.” He pulled her into a hug and let her cry into his shoulder. He knew if he had tried to leave the year before she wouldn’t have cared. Wouldn’t have gotten this for him. But he had changed in the last year. They both had. “I’ll call every chance I get.”

15 Days To Lift Off  
“Steven? Where are you sweetie?” His brother’s annoying voice drifted through the woods. He waited, hidden in the trees for his brother to get close. The he dropped a stick on Chris’ head. “Oh, there you are. Why are you hiding? Don’t you know mommy’s worried about her baby?”  
“Go away.”  
“You know for someone about to get on a space shuttle to Mars you’re doing an awful lot of sulking Steven.”  
“Feel free to take my place.” Steve leaned back against the trunk of the tree.  
“You’re a brat.”  
That was the last thing said before his brother walked back to their family house. He wanted to be mad at the words. But the weren’t really a lie. He groaned and broke off more leaves from the tree. In two days they would be flying down to Cape Canaveral, Florida to be there in time for early boarding onto the shuttle. He had two days left and he didn’t think he could talk his way into staying home. His phone rang and he pulled it out. Let out another groan when he saw who was calling him.  
“Yes mother?”  
“Steven get home right now. We don’t have time for you to be playing in those woods. You have packing to finish.”  
“Coming mother.”

10 Days To Lift Off  
-First Class Boarding Starts-  
The shuttle, or ship or whatever it was called was huge. Bigger than anything he had even seen before. It was big enough to hold three hundred people and carry them over to Mars. It could probably hold even more people. But the tickets stopped at three hundred passengers. One of those tickets was in his hand. One of the special tickets that was for first calls was his. It was one of twenty. He knew at least two of the other nineteen ticket holders.  
The first class rooms were like hotel suites in a five star hotel. They were empty, devoid of life and love. The only good part was he got a separate room from his parents. He could hear his mother talking loudly to some guy she paid to carry her bags for her.  
There was a soft knock at the door and he walked over to it. Standing there was the guy. His blue eyes sparkling and blond curls hidden under a beanie.  
“She said these were yours.” The guy pushed the cart closer to Steve. He kept his hands on two bags Steve didn’t recognize.  
“Thanks. So do you get to just stay on now, even though they’re not boarding lower floors?”  
“Actually I lied.” A blush crawled over the blond’s face. “I don’t have a ticket. I just wanted money.”  
Steve reached out and placed a hand on the cart. A thought crossed his mind as the blond turned to walk away. It would make his parents furious if he acted on in. But it might be entertaining for him.  
“I think I might need help bringing these to the closet. Do you mind?”

6 Days To Lift Off  
He watched as Billy looked over all of the books on the bookshelf. The other never really said much after saying thanks. And he pretty much hid whenever Steve’s parents knocked on the door. Steve kind of understood. He wanted to hide from his parents too. And he would be scared if he snuck onto the ship. Especially since they hadn’t even taken off. If the blond was caught by the wrong person he would be arrested.  
“Are these yours?” Billy asked pointing at the books.  
“No, they were here. I don’t even know what they are. I haven’t looked at them.”  
“There’s a few different genres. There’s classics like Picture of Dorian Gray and Jane Eyre. There’s science books like Cosmos by Carl Sagan and other books about humanities first trips to the moon and other places in space. And…. And you don’t care do you?”  
“Uh,” Steve could feel himself blushed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ve never really read too much. But you can read all the ones you want. Fuck you can just keep them, I don’t care.”  
“You want me to steal from a ship I’m not even supposed to be one?” Billy questioned with a smirk and Steve shrugged at him. As he walked off with one of the books in his hand Steve thought he heard him mumble something about spoiled rich kids. “What did you do to the bed?!”  
Steve flinched as he heard the yell. He peaked into the bedroom and saw the bed with the blankets hanging off the edge and all over the floor. The other boy was looking at it confused.  
“I got stuck getting up.” He felt his face grow hot under the other’s stare. “I’m gonna go see my mom.”

Lift Off  
Siren’s kept going off. He could hear people running around outside the door. A countdown was going off on the speakers.  
Inside he was shaking. He couldn’t believe how close he was to being far away from his father. He had called Max the day before to check on her. She was just as shocked as he was that some rich boy was letting him stay in his room. She also said their parents didn’t really think too much about him not being there. They thought he was just spending his days at the beach and his friends’ houses. So at least they weren’t looking for him.  
The countdown hit one and a loud rumble filled the air. He looked out of the window and saw the ground get further away. The buildings that seemed so big a few days ago now were small. Looking down he could see just how big the ocean was, how blue it was.  
It was a weird thing to watch from the window. How the sky turned from it’s familiar bright blue to darker shades. To indigo, deep violet. To the inky black that was space. That was his new sky for the next nine months.


	2. Flight - part one

Day 1

“I thought we would be, like floating. Why aren’t we floating like in those movies?”  
“Dude that was so long ago. They changed how gravity affected humans during space flight so you wouldn’t float around like thirty to forty years ago.” Billy looked bored as he explained this.  
“Oh,” Steve pouted and crossed his arms. He didn’t see any point of being in space if he couldn’t pretend like he could fly. “Can I float on Mars?”  
“No, but you can go down to the anti-gravity chamber and mess around there.”  
Billy re-opened the book he was reading and turned away. It seemed like that was his favourite way to end conversations. Steve sighed dramatically and flopped down on the bed. He peaked over to see if Billy was watching him. The blond wasn’t. So Steve sighed again, this time a little louder and hit the pillows a little.  
“I’m not going down there with you rich boy.”  
“Don’t call me that.” Steve sassed him.  
“Don’t act like one then.” Billy counted right back. Steve sighed again and moved so he was pressed up against Billy on the bed. Leaned over to rest his head on Billy’s shoulder. “Can I help you Steve?”  
“I’m bored,” Steve whined, dragging out the word.  
“This is gonnna be a long trip,” Billy mumbled under his breath.

Day 4

Now that they were no longer on Earth, Steve was getting more and more annoying. He didn’t know what the other boy’s problem was. If he was getting this bored at the start of the flight, there was no way he would make it to the end. At least not before he drove Billy mad.  
He watched the brunet pace the floor in front of the bed. Tried to not think about how they were sharing said bed. It was one thing for Steve to let him stay in the room. Sharing a bed was another. They were justifying it by saying the bed was big enough to hold six people. So two sharing was fine as long as they didn’t really think about it. Or acknowledge that Steve cuddled up next to him sometimes. He didn’t mind it, actually he quite enjoyed it. At least until Steve quickly pulled away in the morning.  
He was trying his best to not think too much about Steve. He knew it was only a matter of time before the rich boy got bored with playing host. He would soon realize his parents didn’t care how often Billy was in the room with him, and then he’ll kick Billy out. He knew pissing off the parents was the only reason Steve invited him in. Figured it out within the first hour of talking to Steve.

Day 7

It was only a matter of time before his mother demanded his presence outside of his room. He was surprised she left him alone as long as she did. He tired to get more time away from her by saying he didn’t want to leave Billy alone. Without missing a beat she told him to bring Billy along. Said ‘just don’t do anything to embarrass me or your father’.  
Steve saw Billy out of the corner of his eye. The blond was trying to not laugh as his mother scolded him. Watched as Billy smiled sweetly whenever she turned to face the blond. He was surprised at how well Billy could act in front of his parents.  
“I expect to see you at the dinner Steven. Dressed nicely.” His mother turned to leave but stopped by the door. “And clean up the bed. Really Steven the sheets shouldn’t be all over the floor.”  
He sighed and fell onto the bed. Briefly he wondered why his mother never thought it strange that Billy was always there. Especially since they had only met like two weeks ago. But then again, his mother never really paid attention to who his friends were. So she might not even know that he just met Billy. He was brought out of his thoughts by Billy’s laughter.  
“Really Steven your bed is such a mess.” Billy mocked his mothers’ snobby tone. “Clean it up. And dress boring like your father. We wouldn’t want any of our friends to think someone in our family has a personality.”  
“Shut up!” Steve said through his laughter. Billy fell onto the bed next to him laughing as well. Once they both calmed down Steve turned to him. “Are you going to come to the dinner? I hate going to those things alone.”  
“Sure richie boy.” Billy laughed at his frown. “Can’t promise that I’ll behave.”

Day 8

He sat on the couch trying to not look at the bed. Trying to not look into the room where Steve was. Last night, that dinner party. It changed things. At least for him it did. He had no idea what Steve thought. If he even remembered what happened. But Billy remembered. The events had been playing on repeat in his mind since they happened.  
It was clear Steve didn’t want to come on the shuttle in the first place. That his father was disappointed in him. Mr. Harrington made it known to whoever asked that Steve didn’t get into any college, that his grades weren’t good enough. Mrs. Harrington loudly and drunkenly proclaimed that she couldn’t leave her baby alone on Earth for two years. Billy was embarrassed for him.  
The more his parents talked, the more Steve drank. Billy tried to stay close to the brunet. Tried to moderate the amount Steve drank. As the night went on it got harder and harder to stop him. And with the more Steve drank the closer he got to Billy. He kept their bodies close, always had an arm or hand on Billy. Touching him in some way. Billy didn’t know if it was just something Steve did to anyone while he was drunk. Or if it was the brunet’s way of making sure he didn’t ditch and go back to the room.  
At one point, while his mother was talking about him again, Steve leaned over and kissed him.  
That kiss was burned in his mind. The weight of Steve’s lips against his. The feel of his breath, the scent of his cologne. It burned in his mind, in his skin.  
His video communicator lit up. The green incoming call light started flashing. He picked it up and accepted the call.  
“Hey Billy!” Max’s smiling face filled his screen. “How’s space?”

Day 12

Billy was in the bedroom reading his book again. Steve learned quickly that Billy liked to curl up on the bed like a cat to read. Usually he would just let Billy read for however long the blond wanted. But today he wanted to go in there. He wanted to talk to the other. Had wanted to for the past couple of days. But he didn’t know what to say. He was never good at voicing his thoughts.  
He walked into the bedroom and quietly made his way to the bed. Billy sat his book down and looked up at him.  
“Can we talk about the party?”  
“What’s there to talk about?” Billy sounded bored. “Bringing me there, getting drunk…it was all just another way to piss off your parents, right? Like letting me stay here.”  
“Billy I…”  
“I need to go.” Billy got up and left. He left the suite alone for the first time since boarding. Left Steve alone in the bedroom.

Day 16

“Billy it’s been days. Please talk to me.” Steve pleaded with the other. “Hell just look at me.”  
Billy ignored him and continued to read his book. He had been doing so since Steve tried to talk to him a few days ago. Steve kind of understood why Billy got upset. He did originally let Billy in to spite his parents.  
“Look I’m sorry. You’re right I first asked you in to bother my parents. But I like having you around okay? I like having you around to talk to and…” Steve played with the blanket. “I didn’t want to come with my parents because they were never around. They left my brother and I home alone for most of my childhood. And I…”  
“Steve stop talking.” Billy had placed down his book and moved closer. “It’s fine.”  
“No it’s not, not if you’re mad.”  
“I overreacted, it’s whatever.” Billy shrugged and laid back against the pillow.  
“No…I get it, I kind of act like a spoiled rich kid sometimes. And I won’t kiss you again so don’t be worried about that either.” Steve looked over at the blond and saw a light blush cover the others face. “That was part of the problem, right? That I kissed you?”  
“Steve…”  
“Or did you want me to kiss you again and be sober for it? Cause you know you could just ask instead of pouting for days.” The blush on Billy’s face grew deeper. Steve moved closer to the blond. “Do you want to kiss me Billy?”  
“No, you’re hideously ugly. Go away.”  
“I’ll kiss you, I really will. You just have to ask.” Billy sat up and tried to get off the bed. Steve reached out and gently caught his wrist. “I’m not joking Billy. I want to and I want to be sober for it.”  
He got up and left the room. Leaving Billy alone on the bed once again. He didn’t know if anything had changed. If Billy would talk to him again. But he said what he was feeling, said what he could.

Day 20

Steve had been avoiding the bedroom since he last tried to talk to Billy. Billy had no idea where the other had been sleeping. Only knew that the right side of the bed had remined untouched for days. That every time he woke in the middle of the night he was alone.   
Billy hated to admit it but he was hiding for Steve too. He didn’t know what to say since the brunet’s admission. Couldn’t talk to Max about it either since she wasn’t answering any of his calls.  
He was in space, thousands of miles for everyone he knew with no one to talk too. The only one he had to help him with his current situation was Steve. And since Steve basically was the whole situation he wasn’t sure he wanted to talk to him.  
There was a knock on the door and then there was Steve standing in the doorway. He didn’t move any closer until Billy waved him in.  
“If I ask you something, do you promise not to laugh at me?” Steve looked at him with those wide brown eyes.  
“Umm sure.” Billy learned that most people made fun of Steve because of some of the questions he had.  
“Why haven’t we passed anything? There’s like nothing to see out the window.”  
“Steve there’s nothing between Earth and Mars. It’s just empty space.”  
Steve nodded and played with some of the things on the dresser. After a minute or so he turned back to face Billy.  
“Do you think I’m stupid?”  
“No I don’t,” Billy answered after he thought about Steve’s question. “Who cares if space isn’t your thing?”  
“I don’t know anything about the books you read either. And you never saw my grades.”  
“Okay first, I’m a nerd so it doesn’t matter if you know my books or any books. That doesn’t tell you how smart someone is. And school grades don’t tell you how smart you are either. Schools are basically a very relaxed jail for people under the age of twenty and the teach you very little.”  
“So why do think I’m smart.”  
“Never said that. I said you weren’t stupid. Two different things Stevie.”  
Steve looked over at the blond shocked thinking he was serious at first. Billy couldn’t take it and started laughing. Steve sat down on the corner of the bed and pouted.  
“I hate you.”

Day 27

They were talking again. Hanging out. Billy came along to his parents boring dinners. Made them interesting. They started exploring the ship together. Usually when Billy got tired of hearing him complain about how bored he was. The only bad thing was he didn’t sleep much.  
He tired. He really did. But Steve was too big to comfortably sleep on the couch. And since Billy didn’t react well to the kiss. Or the conversation after it. Steve was a little scared to sleep in the bed with him. And he didn’t want to be mean and kick Billy out of the bed.  
He was currently on the couch wrapped up in a blanket. The ceiling was displaying some distant galaxy. The stars being born deep within one of the nebulae. Steve watched amazed. It was almost as cool as watching a supernova simulation. He sighed lightly and dimmed the lights. Zoomed away from the nebulae and out of the galaxy. So now looked onto hundreds of twinkling galaxies.

Day 48

Being sick sucked. Being sick in space on a ship you weren’t supposed to be on sucked even more. Steve wanted to take him to the infirmary, but he wouldn’t allow it. He had no boarding pass, no money. He could walk around the ship in Steve’s shadow. But to put himself in front of a doctor would be stupid.  
So Steve was doing his best at taking care of him. Steve had gone down to the infirmary himself. Complained vaguely of illnesses to get some medication to bring back to him.  
He was grateful Steve tried. At least now he wasn’t nauseous anymore. He would take all the pain as long as his insides would stay where they belonged.   
“Steve?” He croaked out, his voice sounding awful. Steve looked over at him from the end of the bed. “Cuddle?”  
Normally he would feel weird about asking that. But he’ll just blame it on the fever and the pain if Steve asks.  
“Sure Billy.” Steve crawled up the bed and laid down next to him. He pulled Billy close and wrapped his arms tightly around the sick man. The blond smiled a little and drifted off to sleep listening to the heart beat in Steve’s chest.

Day 62  
“Are you guys dating?”  
“Max…”  
“What? It’s a legitimate question. When I woke you up a few days ago you had to pry his arms off to get out of bed. Is he like an octopus?”  
“I should have ignored your call. Both that one and this one.  
“Not my fault you didn’t. So are you?”  
Billy sighed and flopped down onto the bed. Max’s laughter echoed out from the speakers. He was staring to miss having her around. But right now, with this conversation, he was glad she was back on Earth.  
“Can we talk about something else please?”

Day 85  
“What makes Mars so special? Why are people so excited to go there? I mean it’s just dusty and empty.” Steve was complaining once again.  
“It’s a scientific achievement.” Billy said. “It’s the first planet that we colonized, terraformed. The first one we made to sustain human life. No one was sure if the eco-domes would work, if we could actually create an atmosphere and water source. No one knew if farming or raising animals and plants would be possible. The fact that it all worked is a miracle.”  
“Okay, you need to stop because you sound like a nerd and are killing me rep and brain.” Billy pushed him lightly. “But why do my parents have to go and kidnap me as they do?”  
“They’re rich assholes who want to feel more important than they are I guess.” Billy said shrugging.  
The dining room was crowded as various passengers walked about getting food and talked with one other. There were a few other people their age but Steve never wanted to be around them. Most of the people on this ship were like his parents. Super rich and snobby. The other teens didn’t like Billy, except one girl. And all she did was flirt so Steve never wanted her to be anywhere near them.  
Billy was his. It happened some time around Billy getting sick. Once he had gotten better Steve had officially asked him out. Decided to just take a risk on it. No one was too surprised by the development. His mother had even admitted she thought Billy was his boyfriend from the start and Steve had helped buy his ticket.  
The only one who didn’t know for sure was Billy’s sister Max. But she guessed and bugged him about it every day. Billy just didn’t tell her for some reason Steve didn’t understand.  
He guessed that Billy’s home life wasn’t great and thought that might be why he didn’t confirm anything with Max. No happy person would run away to another planet without telling anyone. He also noticed how both Billy and Max flinched and fell silent if a door slammed on her side. How they ended the call quickly whenever that happened.

Day 92

“Mom knows it’s you on the shuttle.”  
Billy froze next to Steve. Max looked scared on the screen. Max knowing where he was, was one thing. She wouldn’t tell anyone. Her mother might, even if it was just an accident. Billy could still get sent home. Sent back to his father. And it wouldn’t be on a nice ship like this. It would be in a small police shuttle and he would probably be in the cell.  
This wasn’t how the call was supposed to go. He was supposed to introduce Steve formally. Let his sister and boyfriend meet each other. He wasn’t supposed to feel that familiar fear in every part of his body again.  
“Has she said anything?”  
“Not yet, not to…” Max cut herself off and looked away. “He knows I’m lying about something. And he doesn’t believe that you just left on your own. I can hear him yelling drunk some nights. Right now he thinks you’re with your mom.”  
Billy scoffed and leaned into Steve’s arms. Steve’s warm embrace was what he needed right now.  
“I haven’t seen her since he threw her out. I don’t even know how to contact her.”  
“Maybe rich boy there can help you.” Max said.  
“Why do you people call me that?” Steve pouted as Billy laughed.

Day 117

Waking up in Steve’s arms was amazing. It felt so warm; so safe. Billy blinked at the simulated sunrise playing out on the wall. He knew that the simulations were supposed to help break up the black outside the windows. But he couldn’t help but think they were stupid.  
Maybe he was blessed with sunrises and sunsets. Blessed with a multitude of colors and hues. He had to have been. Because these ones that were simulated lacked something. They weren’t colorful or bright enough. There was some type of magic that was missing in them.  
“Stop thinking, more sleep.” Steve mumbled softly into his hair.

Day 135

Emergency lights were flashing in the hallways when they stepped out of their room. A siren was going off in a constant loop. Crew members rushed out of their own rooms and pushed past them to get to the command center. A tired officer was telling passengers to remain calm.  
“What’s happening?” Steve asked overwhelmed by everything.  
Billy gently directed Steve away from the crowds. He listened carefully to the whispers from crew members as they passed. Billy led him into an empty lounge. He sat down, pulling Steve down into his lap.  
“Nothing serious. They’re just being cautious because there’s a few stray asteroids nearby.”  
“So we’re not going to die?”  
“No baby, we’re not.”  
“Good,” Steve said burying his face into Billy’s hair. “It wasn’t in my life plans to die in space.”


	3. Flight - part two

Day 160  
The ship itself wasn’t too decorated for the holidays. Occasionally there were lights or tinsel or something around someone’s door. But the halls and main dining lounge looked as they always did. The same clear glass rimmed with gold and polished steel.  
Their suite, along with the one next door was an explosion of Christmas. Steve didn’t even remember his mother packing all of these decorations. But apparently she did. She even somehow got a tree for both suites.  
Billy had watched her decorate their rooms silently from the couch. He never spoke or gave his input the few times she asked them for their opinions. He never even picked up his book. He just sat and watched as she made Christmas throw up all over their stuff. Billy waited until she was gone before he spoke.  
“I hate your mom.”  
Steve thought it was a joke until he looked at his boyfriend. Billy wasn’t happy. There was no sparkle in his eyes like there was when he was joking. In fact Billy looked like he was about to cry.  
In that moment Steve remembered what Max had said a few days ago. She wouldn’t be able to call over the holidays. She wouldn’t have the chance. At the time Billy said it was fine and it didn’t matter too much. Now Steve knew that was a lie. He thought about how hard it was for Billy to be so far from his sister. His family.  
“I’m sorry.” He said cuddling up next to the blond.

Day 167  
The walls were playing out a simulation of the California coast in San Diego. He knew Steve was only running this simulation and similar ones to try and make him feel better.  
“What was it like? Growing up in a place like that?” Steve asked quietly from beside him.  
He was quite for a moment. Watching the waves crash along the beach. Pretending that it was real, that he was actually there on the beach. That he wasn’t just watching it on the wall.  
“It was amazing, the beach was my favorite. Before she left, my mom would take me down to the beach all the time. She taught me to swim, then surf. The beach was our escape.”  
Steve listened carefully, let Billy take him time while talking. He didn’t want to rush him, didn’t want Billy to stop.  
“After she left, my dad got remarried. That’s where Max got added into my life. From the beginning he liked her more than he ever liked me. She was perfect, good at school and most importantly straight. I hated her. She was way too young to understand but still I hated her.  
“Dad forced me to watch her. I had to bring her everywhere, she was annoying. Whined all the time. I can still remember all the things she would cry about: Billy it’s too hot, I’m thirsty, I want ice cream, I want to go home.” Billy sighed and pulled Steve into his side. “I was terrible to her. I pushed her a lot. Yelled at her. Took out my anger onto her. You know she asked me to teach her how to surf. I laughed and said I would rather watch her drown.”  
Steve took a deep breath and hugged Billy tightly. Knowing that telling this story, admitting his past was hard for Billy.  
“She almost did drown when she attempted to surf. I had to rush in and pull her out with some other guys. She gave up surfing that day. Switched to skate boarding. After watching her beat herself up on that board for a few weeks, I caved and gave her a few lessons. But it didn’t, it didn’t change anything.  
“Nothing changed until last year. She came home early one night. Saw my dad beating me with his belt. I don’t think she’s completely forgiven me. I just think she understands now why I was so angry.  
“I don’t think she should forgive me. I haven’t changed that much.”

Day 174  
Steve was in his parent’s suite trying his hardest to not roll his eyes as his father yelled at him. He knew eventually he would get caught, but he always thought that it would be his mother who would be mad. Not his father.  
Apparently, Christopher had mentioned to their parent’s that his little brother had declined every single call since he had gotten on the ship.  
Steve knew that his brother wasn’t really bothered by this. Knew that Chris didn’t really care. That he was just using it as a way to get Steve in trouble.  
So there he sat. Listening to his father call him a disappointment once again. Listened to how he should try and be more like Chris. More like his perfect older brother.  
Thirty minutes later he was back in his own room. He angerly flopped down onto the bed next to Billy. The blond lifter one hand and ran it through Steve’s hair without looking up from his book.  
“I hate him.” Steve mumbled into the pillows. “I fucking hate him.”  
“Yeah, your dad is a little bitch.”  
Steve giggled and moved so he was on top of Billy. Billy sat his book down and wrapped his arms around the boy in his lap.  
“No, my brother. Although I do hate my dad too.”  
“Wait you have a brother?”  
“Yeah, I think I mentioned him like once.”  
“Oh, and you hate him?” Steve nodded and kissed Billy’s chest. “Wanna talk about it?”  
“Nope.”

Day 182  
“Billy this is El. She’s my new friend.” The redhead said smiling. Next to her sat a cute girl with curly brown hair.  
“Max can you give a guy a warning before putting someone else on the call?” Billy yelled as he quickly scrambled to get out of bed and at least get a shirt on. Steve sleepily waved at the screen once Billy was out of the way. Max smiled and waved back.  
“It’s not my fault you answer half asleep. That’s your problem.”  
“How’s your school going?” He asked loudly from the other side of the room.  
“Great. I joined a new club after the Christmas holiday. Made some new friends.” She paused a minute. Debating whether or not to tell her brother what club she had joined. “It’s the science club.”  
“So your new friends are a bunch of nerds?”  
“Not nice.” El said glaring at him.  
“Sorry, my brother doesn’t know how to be nice and make friends El.” Max explained to the girl. “I’m amazed he got himself a boyfriend.”  
“Shut up Max!” Billy said as Steve laughed.

Day 189  
The dinner parties were all the same. Billy watched him as he tried to be good, tried to be nice. Watched and listened as his parents berate and embarrassed him. Watched as he progressively got more and more drunk.  
Every time they were forced to attend one of these Billy had to watch the brunet fall into a downward spiral. He hated it.  
Especially this dinner. This dinner where they were questioning what Steve was going to do on Mars. If he was going to be helping out at his father’s company. Steve never gave a complete answer. Stuttered and stumbled around his words before walking away and getting another drink.  
By the end of the night Billy had to basically carry Steve back to their suite. Forced the brunet to lay down on the bed. Had to keep him away from the small bar in their room.  
“I’ve not nothing Bills. On Earth or Mars, nothing.” Steve slurred his words as he fell into the pillows.  
Billy looked down at the boy sadly, feeling his heart break at the words that were spoken.

Day 192  
“Do we really have to have this conversation Billy?”  
“Yeah Steve we do. You said there was nothing…”  
“I was drunk!”  
“So why are you fighting it so much?”  
They both fell silent and Steve glared at Billy. He never wanted this to come up. Not with Billy. He never wanted Billy to know how dumb he really was.  
“I barely graduated Billy and my dads made it perfectly clear that I will never get any type of job at his company.”  
“Stevie, the whole reason people go to Mars is so they can start over.” Billy spoke softly. “I don’t know what I’m doing either. But we have time, we’ll figure it out.”

Day 200  
The simulated sunrise played out on the wall, mocking Steve and his lack of sleep. He glared at the red and orange hues. They were bright and more annoying than the indigo and deep violet that was the backdrop for the night stars. The morning simulations didn’t make Steve feel more at home on the ship. They just reminded him of how bad his sleeping habits were.  
He turned over and faced Billy. The blond was curled up in the blankets. Soft snores escaped his mouth as he slept. His eyelids gently fluttered as he dreamed. Billy shuffled around in his blankets and moved closer. His mass of blond curls fell from the pillows to Steve’s shoulder.  
Steve sighed quietly and closed his eyes. Nobody had warned him about space flight. How it would affect his already messed up sleep schedule. How the lack of fresh air, of wind, occasionally messed with your mind. How the room could be burning hot, but the windows were always cool to the touch. Nobody had warned him that humans weren’t meant to live inside a metal cage, no matter how nice it was. That they needed nature, however small.  
He pulled the blankets up and tucked his face into Billy’s hair. Breathing in the scent. He hoped to get a few hours of sleep before everyone else woke up for the day.

Day 212  
“So mumsy told me that you’re dating someone. Why didn’t you tell me Steven? And why haven’t you called me? It’s been months.”  
Steve glared at Christopher’s image on the screen. He hadn’t called or answered the calls because he didn’t want to talk to his brother. Because he was enjoying the silence and distance between them. He didn’t even want to answer this call. The only reason he did was because Chris had told their parents. And his father told him if he missed another call, they would do one as a whole family. That was not something Steve wanted.  
“I never tell you when I’m dating someone.”  
“Don’t be rude Steven.” Christopher said. “Introduce me to this person.”  
At that moment Billy stumbled out of the bedroom half asleep. His blond curls were a mess on his head. He barely glanced at the screen before turning to Steve.  
“End the fucking call and come to bed.” Billy said before a yawn left his mouth. Then he slowly made his way back where he came from.  
“Sorry big brother, gotta go.” Steve smirked at Christopher’s angry face and quickly ended the call. He’ll deal with his parent’s anger later.  
Once he got into the bed Billy moved closer and threw his arm over Steve’s stomach. The blond sighed happily and drifted off to sleep.  
Hours later, in the middle of the simulated sunrise Steve turned to the waking boy. The blue eyes were still glazed with sleep. And the curls were even messier than they were the night before.  
“Thanks for coming out last night.” Steve whispered in the dark of the room. “He would have bugged me for hours.”  
“You still hate him?”  
“Yep.”  
“Wanna talk about it yet?”  
“Nope.”  
“Okay,” Billy rolled over so he was halfway on top of Steve. “Then we’re going back to sleep.”

Day 224  
Filling out an application to work on another planet was weird and hard. He had never filled an application out on Earth, but he was sure some of these questions weren’t on it. He couldn’t see a question like: do you have any medical conditions that would make you unable to wear a full spacesuit and oxygen tank outside the dome for long periods of time being useful on Earth. He didn’t quite know how to answer the question.  
He could answer the questions about skills and experience. Could answer that he at least finished high school, even if it was a lie. They probably wouldn’t check or if they did it would take a while for them to get the records anyways.  
Billy hoped that most places didn’t really care about his level of education. Hoped that since they were all entry level, low level jobs it wouldn’t be that important.  
Steve was with him when he first started filling out the applications. But he had left shorty after Billy had started. Had gotten pulled out of the room by his mother. So, Billy was left to fill them out alone.  
The questions continued on; are you planning on staying on Mars permanently or just for a cycle or two? Billy had no problem answering that one. He knew that he wanted to stay. That there was no place else for him to go. Knew that even if it was hard, he was going to be building his life on Mars.

Day 230  
“This is very important Steven. This trip, opening this office on Mars. This will be the very first insurance firm on Mars. Do you understand how important that is? I cannot have you messing this up for me. You need to end this childish behavior of yours before we land on Mars.”  
Steve sat frozen on the couch long after his father had left. Sat there letting the words run around in his mind over and over. Like playing a song on repeat. A constant loop of his father yelling at him.  
At first Billy let him sit there. Let him have a moment to himself. But as the minute turned to hours. And the hours stretched on there was still no movement from Steve. Now Billy was starting to worry. Slowly he approached the couch and sat down beside the unmoving boy. He gently ran his fingers through the brown hair.  
“Babe, Stevie can you talk to me?” Billy said softly.  
Steve didn’t verbally respond, but he did lean into Billy’s touch. That slight movement was all Steve had done in the past few hours. After a couple of minutes Steve shifted to where he was curled into Billy, halfway sitting on his lap. Billy wrapped his arms around the other and kissed the top of his head.  
“Can I fill out some applications with you Bills?” Steve’s voice was quite and sad. It made Billy hug him tighter.  
“Of course, baby we’ll do some tomorrow.”  
They remained on the couch for a while longer. Then Billy carefully moved Steve off before standing and picking him up. He carried Steve into the bedroom despite the soft protests. He gently dropped Steve onto the bed and smiled as Steve pulled him down beside him.  
“You’re staying on Mars, right? You’re staying?”  
“Yeah Stevie, I’m staying on Mars.”  
Steve grabbed Billy’s hand and held it up to his face. Traced out the lines on the palm. Held on tighter when Billy tried to pull away as he laughed.  
“Can I stay with you Bills?”  
Billy fell silent. As much as he hoped and dreamed, he never dared to believe that Steve would want to stay. Never thought that it was even an option for Steve to stay. But he wanted it. Dreamed about it.  
“Yeah, you can. I don’t know how I’m gonna be able to do it yet.”  
“Neither do I. We’ll figure something out. Or they’ll just have to fire us off the planet in a massive cannon when we don’t pay our bills.”  
“Stevie,” Billy laughed harder than he had in a while. He could feel the tears forming in his eyes. “Stevie, they don’t do that.”  
“Maybe they should.”

Day 246  
“Bills, there’s two messages for you. They came in overnight!”  
Billy stumbled out of the bedroom half asleep. Steve was over at the desk on a call with Max and El. He could see Steve clicking through their applications, seeing if any others had gotten a response. Billy walked over and waved as the girls said hello.  
“Oh and my mom said if I can’t find a job she’ll hire me into the firm. Apparently, she owns more of it than my dad.”  
“What would you be doing Steve?” El asked curiously.  
“She said I could start in an office assistant secretary type job. So, I guess answering the phone and office work. I’m not really sure. I always avoided my dad’s office, so I don’t really know what goes on there.”  
“What about Billy?” Max looked at her brother through the screen with worry on her face.  
“There’s no loyalty to me. I’m not her baby.” Billy joked. “It’s fine though. Wearing a suit everyday isn’t my kind of thing.”  
Billy glanced over the first message. It was a very kind, very short rejection. He closed it and hid his face in Steve’s neck instead of opening the second message. He had never really applied to jobs before. There wasn’t much open to a teenager still in high school. The most he had ever done was be a lifeguard and teach swimming to little kids. But neither of those skills would be helpful on the desert planet they were heading towards.  
“You okay Billy?” Max’s voice sounded far away. Like he was drifting off into space, floating further and further away from the communicator.  
“Bills?” Steve nudged his side gently, bringing him back to the room.  
“Yeah,” he said softly. “I will be. Just let me sit here like this.”

Day 262  
“Billy what’s that bright spot.”  
They were in the back of the ship at the observatory deck. Steve was picking out random things and asking Billy to explain what they were. He wanted the most detailed explanation Billy could give. And Billy was happy to tell Steve everything he knew about space.  
So once again he followed the direction of Steve’s finger to look at the bright spot. When he saw what it was, he paused. He knew that this was going to happen. That as they approached Mars, the Earth would barely be visible. He knew that. He was also still halfway convinced that this whole trip was a dream.  
“That’s the Earth Stevie.”  
“Bills be serious.”  
“I am. See?” Billy touched the window so the names of all the celestial bodies appeared. The spot Steve had pointed too was labeled Earth. The Moon was labeled too although they couldn’t see it.  
“Oh, I guess I never realized how far away we were.”  
Billy touched the window again to make the names disappear. He stared at the Earth with a weird feeling growing inside. His whole family was on that planet. But he had never felt more at home than he did next to Steve.

Day 274  
William Hargrove, thank you for applying at Intergalactic Café. Based off your application we feel like you would be a good fit for the position. Please contact us when you land on the planet so we can set up an in-person interview. Best of luck on the rest of your travels.  
Celia, Manager Intergalactic Café.  
Billy read the message over in shock. He honestly thought that he would get a reply for the position of checking for cracks in the eco-domes. Or for working in one of the farms. He never thought that the café would contact him.  
It was Mrs. Harrington who had shown him and Steve the virtual tour of the café. It was high class. The kind of place he wouldn’t have been allowed into on Earth. Mrs. Harrington was planning on taking the two boys to it for brunch. She had heard positive reviews from friends and other guests on the ship. So she wanted to check it out.  
Billy had tried to focus on what she was telling him and Steve. He really did. But he was just a little distracted by the ‘Now Hiring’ banner that looped around the bottom of the screen. So after Mrs. Harrington had left Billy filled out an application and sent it in. Sent it with no hopes of being chosen because he wasn’t like the people in the virtual tour. But for some reason Celia, the bubbly person from the screen wanted to interview him.  
“You’ll do good Bills.” Steve whispered into his ear. “I know you will.”

Day 280: Landing  
The landing onto Mars happened while they were sleeping. While he was safely tucked into Steve’s arms, Steve’s warm embrace. So neither of the two boys had to experience the slightly bumpy landing.  
They missed it as the shuttle landed just outside the largest eco-dome. Missed the connecting tunnel as it slowly expanded from the dome and lock onto the ship. Surrounding the door with an air-tight seal. They didn’t see as the technicians examined the tunnel for cracks before opening the air-locked doors. Finally the passage from the ship to the dome was open.  
They were woken up by Mrs. Harrington. Who was displeased to find that they hadn’t packed yet. As quickly as they could, Billy and Steve threw all of their belongings back into their suitcases. Two hours later they were ready and had joined Steve’s parents in the line to enter the dome.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has read this story so far.


End file.
